Poison Thorns
by Dixxy Mouri
Summary: Sequel to End of Innocence. Two years after Cye returned to the other Ronins, Talpa returns, but this time, with a new Venom. Old wounds are opened, and it'll take the new redhead in Cye's life to heal them. Rating for mature situations. Complete!
1. Prologue

Poisoned Thorns

Prologue

Disclaimer: Ronin Warriors and all related titles do not belong to me. However, I do own Kioko, Sheila, Osiris, Kojiro, the Armor of the Flora, the Armor of the Icefire, the Armor of the Chrono, and of course, Ariel.

Talpa grimaced. He'd spent two years recovering from the Ronin Warriors' last bought. He should have known that the Torrent boy would have his powers heightened faster than the other Ronins, but he'd been a fool. There should have been a great deal more planning. Never mind kidnap the child, kill the boy in his sleep. Of course he was no longer a boy. He was very much a man, but still, he should have gotten him then.

Talpa had rebuilt his armor, his army, and had Kioko and Kayura train the latest bearer of the Venom Armor. That fool, Sehkment. He'd signed his own death sentence by threatening the girl. He knew Ariel's father and evidentially enough, her grandfather, would be on him. Strange that the tiger got him in the end. But it did not matter. He newest Warlord was no fool.

The throne room was cold, despite the many torches that lit the room. They produced a cold, bone chilling sensation rather than a warmth. Before him stood Osiris, Dais, Cale, Kioko, and Kayura. The Venom bearer would appear soon enough. Dais, Cale, and Osiris had yet to seem them.

Osiris stepped forward. He was a tall man with dirty blonde hair blue eyes. "Master Talpa, why had you called us, your mighty Dark Warlords, to see you?"  
"Yes, why are we here?" asked Cale. 

"Is it having to do with the two year anniversary of Sehkment's death?" asked Dais. 

"No, it has nothing to do with the fall of Sehkment," said Talpa. "But you were close, Dais. Very, very close. Kayura, please educate the Dark Warlords on what you and Kioko have been up to these past two years?"

"We searched for a new bearer of the Armor of Venom and found one. We've been training them since then. Trust me, there is no doubt in our mind they'll be perfect," said Kayura. "They can't wait to attack Torrent."

"Master Talpa, when will we see him?" asked Osiris. 

Kioko snorted. "Soon enough, Osiris, soon enough, just keep your pants on. Unless you'd like to come to my room later on."

"KIOKO!"  
"Yes, Master Talpa," said Kioko, bowing respectfully before her master.

"That's better," said Talpa. "Like Osiris and Kioko, your newest member was also just given immortality a short time ago. However, they have a spunk that none of you had."

"I did some research on our new member, Master Talpa. I just had to say a few names and they were all over this position," said Kioko. "It didn't' take long for them to learn the swords, either."

"Good, very good," said Talpa. "Are they ready to be presented to the rest of the Dynasty yet?"

"Absolutely. OPEN THE WALLS!" cried Kayura. The wall behind Talpa opened into a huge audience of Tin Cans, Nether Spirits, and Warlords sat waiting anxiously for the new Dark Warlord to appear.

"Badamon, bring them in. The whole Dynasty is waiting," said Kioko.

Slowly, the doors creaked open. Badamon floated in followed by the new Dark Warlord. The crowd gasped. "Talpa, I present to you your new Dark Warlord of Venom."

Talpa looked his new Dark Warlord up and down. First off, he noticed that it was a she, not a he, as he had expected. "What makes her such a strong ally?"

"You shall see, Master Talpa," said Kioko. Talpa continued to evaluate her. She had deep, wavy red hair and large green eyes. She was tall and shaped just as well as Kioko. A glint in her eyes said much about her.

"Master Talpa," started Kayura, "and the rest of you, may I present to you all, Sheila, Dark Warlady of Venom."


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One: School Days

"I can't do this."

"You knew this was gonna happen one day, Cye."

"But so soon!?" I said.

Kojiro sighed heavily. "Yes, you did, I did, everyone did. So get a grip on reality!"

Rowen walked into the living room where Kojiro and I were having our discussion. "What are you guys talking about?"

I felt my eyes water. "I'm not ready for this!"  
"Oh good Lord, Cye, it's just her first day of first grade," said Sage. 

I sniffed. "But she's growing up so fast," I said. 

Rowen laughed. "Ariel seems excited about it."

"Daddy, Koji, Rowen, Sagey, look at me!" The four of us looked up. Ariel was at the bottom of the stairs wearing a pale blue jumper, white tights, black shoes, and a dark blue blouse. Her auburn hair was done up in a French braid. Over one shoulder was a pale blue Sailor Mercury backpack. Mia stood behind her with the keys to the jeep. "I'm all ready for school!"

"You are, aren't you?" I said. 

"Daddy, why are crying?"

"Because you're getting to be a big girl," I said. "I can't believe you're already six years old and at that going into grade school."

Ariel blinked. "Why not?"

"You'll understand when you're older," I said. 

"Are you and Pops coming?" she asked. 

"To see you off, yes," I said, getting up. Dad came downstairs. He only looked four years older than me, but in actuality, he was well over four hundred years older than me. Weird knowing that Anubis Doji was my father. 

"Ready to go, Pops?" asked Ariel. 

"Of course," he said. I noticed the camera hanging around his neck. Oh no. My father, a camera, and my daughter were never a good combination. Unless you were a film salesman. "Let's get going already!"

"Hey, good luck in the big house!" said Kento as he walked into the room. Ariel blinked at him. "Have a good day, shrimpazoid."

"Kento!" said Ariel. Kento plastered a foolish grin on his face and sauntered away. I got up and headed towards the door, Ariel running after me. Dad laughed, shaking his head. Outside, White Blaze gave her a forlorn look. "I'll be back after school," she said. White Blaze tried to slurp her, but she backed away. "Not now!"

Ryo smiled from behind White Blaze. "Have a nice day," he said, then he went back to what he was doing. Ariel, Mia, Dad, and I climbed into the car and drove off.

After Dad went through a full roll of film and I spent a good ten minutes telling her over and over again to behave and be a good girl, Ariel went inside the building. Then, Mia drove us home and gave Rowen the keys so that myself, Ryo, Sage, Kento, Kojiro, and Rowen could get to our OWN school. 

College.

Graduation was very, very close at hand. I'd have my marine biology bachelor's degree soon enough. Then I'd be able to make enough money to buy a house so Ariel and I didn't need to depend on Mia or live in a cramped apartment. 

I know what you're thinking. Why do I have a six year while I'm still in college? Easy. She was conceived when I was fifteen and born when I was sixteen. Yes, I'm a teen father, but I'm a responsible one. More responsible than her mother was.

I was fifteen, she was sixteen. I was a happy and content virgin, but she was not a virgin and wanted me and her in bed together. I said no. She persisted. What ended up being a peaceful date turned into a horrifying rape for me. I remember not really talking to anyone for a month. During that month she got all "lovey-dovey" with me. Then she left because I had gotten her pregnant. 

A few days after the baby was born, we ran into each other. She wanted to put the baby in the orphanage after telling me why she'd left. I couldn't bear to see my own child, no matter how devastating it was to my morality and dignity it had been to me. I took her in and fled to Tokyo for four years.

That's where I met Kojiro. He'd been kicked out of his home because his "father" was angry that he wasn't really his son. Kojiro had been the result of an affair between his mother and her boss. Kojiro felt sorry for me, helped me name Ariel, got me psychological help, and we worked together to make a living. 

Four years and three months later, another event came thrashing back at me. I am not just a young adult. I am not just a college student. I am not just a father. I am also a Ronin Warrior. Chances are you already know all about that considering you're reading this so I won't bother getting into detail about all that. What happened then was Ariel was kidnapped by the Dynasty as were the other Ronins, Kojiro and our young friend Yuli discovered they, too, were Ronins, and I admitted to Mia, Yuli, and Anubis why I left.

After saving Ariel and the guys saved me, Sehkment, Dark Warlord of Venom, was killed by White Blaze. Kojiro was captured by Kioko, the new Warlord/lady, tortured, and Yuli sacrificed ten years of his life to save him. Then, after Ryo and the other formed the Inferno, I developed a new power. Yuli and I did Talpa in, but Ryo and the others finished him off. 

Two years have passed since then. Ariel is growing up to be a beautiful young girl, I'm getting better and better off, and things were beginning to turn around. 

Little did I know but they'd head right back down the path I was headed once again, and this time, it wouldn't be so easy.

Lunch came sometime later. I was working on my homework in a secluded spot under a large tree I head to when I don't want to be bothered by the others. They understand. Sometimes I go to be alone, work on homework, and a lot of times plan for the future. Ariel has become my biggest expense over a short period of time. All of my earnings are very thinly spread. I can't afford to buy her the prettiest dresses or the most expensive toys. Now that she was getting into grade school I feared that she was going to get pressured because of this. 

"Mind if I take a seat?" I looked up to see a short young woman with chin length red hair and bright green eyes smiling at me. 

"Uh, sure," I said nervously, moving over. The woman sat down. 

"Hi, I'm Robyn," she said sweetly. 

"Um, hi, I'm, Cye," I said. Robyn smiled sweetly. 

"What's your major?"  
"Marine biology."

"Seafood cook."

"What!?"  
"Kidding!" said Robyn with a laugh. "I'm just joshing with ya, Cye! I'm a literature major."

"That's nice I said," I said. 

"You're being shy, are you shy?"

"If you only knew," I said, standing up and walking away. I didn't have to look back to know that Robyn was probably a little hurt.

Note: Robyn belongs to Ghost of the Dawn and is from her fic Demons in the Doorway, Monsters Down the Hall. I did ask permission to use Robyn for this fic and I cannot make a comment if you want to use her. Bring it up with Ghost.


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two: Sheila's Return

(Cye)

After school, I waited outside of Ariel's school. The bell rang and I prepared myself for the horde of kids that were about to come running out. Sure enough, a stampede of children ranging in ages from six to twelve ran from the school. I sought refuge in a nearby tree. Finally I saw Ariel walking out of school with two girls about her age, talking away. 

I jumped down from the tree and walked over. The two girls with Ariel looked up. One of the girls was tall with emerald green hair in two pigtails. She was wearing a cute little green dress. Ariel's other friend had short, chin length pink hair and midnight blue eyes. She was wearing a blue T-shirt and jeans. Ariel looked up and waved. "Hi Daddy!"

"That's your dad?" asked the girl in green. 

"Hi sweetie," I said. Ariel smiled. "I see you've made some friends."

"Yup!" she said. "This is Skye," she said, referring to the girl in blue, "and this is Starr." 

"Pleased to meet you girls," I said. "All right, Ariel, let's head home, shall we, or do you want to stay and chat with your friends until their parents get here?"

"Yeah, that might be a good idea," said Ariel. She and her friends began to talk, so I got out some homework. After ten minutes, Skye and Starr's parents still hadn't shown up. The school was deserted.

Click. Click. Click. 

"Who's that lady?" asked Starr.

"She looks. . . weird," said Skye.

I looked up and my heart stopped. There, standing in a green suit dress stood Sheila. "Long time no see, Cye, long time no see."

I stood up. "What do you want?"

"You and I made a deal seven years ago that if you kept your mouth shut I wouldn't be forced to kill you, but you blabbed, so now, I'm back," she said. She started advancing on me. I stepped backwards.

"Uh oh, this looks like trouble," said Skye. 

"What's going on? What happened between you and that bad lady seven years ago!?" asked Ariel. 

"Ariel, get out of here, now!" I said. 

"Daddy, I'm not leaving you!" said Ariel. 

Sheila stopped and turned around. "Ah, so this is what you've grown into," she said, stepping towards Ariel. 

Instinctively, I ran over. "Stay away from her!"

"Make me," said Sheila. "Ronin."

I froze, as did Ariel. Skye and Starr just stared. "Uh oh," said Ariel slowly.

"How did you know about that?" I asked. 

"I ran into some old friends of yours, by the names of Kioko and Kayura. They trained me as your old adversary Sehkment once was," said Sheila. "You see, I'm his heir."

Ariel went back to confused. "Daddy, fight her!"

"I, I don't know if I can," I said. 

"Why!?" asked Ariel.

"He can't hit a lady!" said Starr.

"She's no lady," I said. Sheila slapped me. 

"I should have killed you when I had the chance. But, Talpa doesn't want that," said Sheila. 

My eyes widened. "Talpa?!"

"Yes, Talpa," said Sheila. "You think that you finished him off? No, no, he's much too powerful for that."

"Stay away from my Daddy!" said Ariel, taking out the Jewel of Life. 

Sheila slowly turned around. "The Jewel of Life won't work on the one who gave you life."

Ariel blinked. "What?"

"I don't care if you like me or, I don't like you, nor did I like carrying you for nine months," said Sheila. 

"Ariel, I think she's your mother," said Skye. 

"My. . . mother?" asked Ariel. 

"I should've killed you, too, brat. You could've ruined me," said Sheila. "But now I have the Dynasty."

"The Dynasty's bad!" said Ariel. "I don't care if you're my mother, you're bad!"

Sheila chuckled. "Maybe I am, maybe I am. Your father certainly thinks so," she said. She glared at me. I closed my eyes and winced. "Either way, he's coming with me."

"No!" said Ariel. Before I could even try to escape. Sheila grabbed the collar of my shirt and everything went black. 

(Ariel)

"Daddy!" I cried. He and my mother were gone. Is that why he avoided talking about my mother? What did she do to him?

"Ariel, what just happened?" asked Skye, just as the actual sky began to turn gray. "I have some money, we could go back inside and call a pay phone."

"We have to call my house first," I said. "I know I wasn't supposed to tell anyone about this, but, do you believe in legends?"  


After we got inside, I told Skye and Starr everything, from when Sehkment kidnapped me when I was four and how I got involved with the Ronin Warriors. The school was completely deserted, the lights were off, and the phones were dead. It was really scary. "Do you think the other Ronin Warriors are gonna show up?" asked Starr. 

"I hope so," I said. That was when I heard footsteps. 

"Is that good or bad?" asked Skye.

"I don't know," I said, poking my head out of the door. I saw something coming down the hall. "I don't know what it is."

"That I don't like," said Starr, biting her fingernails. 

Skye poked her head out. The figure noticed and started off at a run. Skye and I screamed, dragged Starr out of the room, and ran.

"Ariel!"

"Sage?" I asked. "Is that you, Sagey?"

"Yes, what are you doing still here?" he asked once he caught up. "Who are your friends?"

"Skye and Starr, but that's not the important thing! A mean woman took my Daddy away! She said her name was Sheila, and she said she was my mother," I said. 

"What!?" asked Sage, wide eyed. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Nuh-uh!" said Starr. "A woman named Sheila really did take Ariel's dad away. In a second they were gone without a trace!"

Sage looked serious. "Sage, is my mother really dangerous?"

"You're too young to understand just how much trouble she is," he said. 

"And you don't' know how much trouble you're in, Halo."

"Cale!" 


	4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three: Dark Hallways

(Sage)

"Oh man, this is NOT what I need," I said. My adversary stepped out of the shadows, an evil grin on his face. "Cale, what is Sheila doing working for the Dynasty!?"  
"Easy. Talpa saw her as en exceptional replacement for Sehkment. She already has it in for Torrent. She won't kill him, but, maybe she'll repeat what she did all those years ago."

"No!" I said. Cye would be destroyed. 

"Maybe yes, maybe no, I don't know much on that mater," said Cale. 

"Do what?" asked Ariel. "What did she do to him?"

"You're too young to know," I said. "Get behind me." The girls had no trouble obeying. Cale grinned evilly. 

"Time to die, Ronin," he said. 

"Not on my dead body."

CLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANGCLANG!

"Pops!" said Ariel. Cale screamed and was gone from the intense light of the Staff. Ariel ran over to Anubis and hugged him while he was in the robes of the Ancient. "Pops, a woman named Sheila took off with Daddy."

Anubis silenced and his temper started to go off. "Anubis, don't do it," I said. "Sheila's gotten us all mad at one point or another."

"But I heard that threat. She'd better stay away from my son," said Anubis. 

Skye and Starr exchanged looks of confusion and both shrugged. Anubis looked at the girls. "I'll explain about those two later," I said quickly.

"All right," said Anubis. "This had better be good."

(Cye)

I hid in the corner of the large room. I felt a small trickle of blood drip down my chin. I subconsciously wiped it away. I could have cared less about that. It was the big picture I was frightened off again. No, no, not again. Dear God, why did you let it happen again?! 

Sheila towered over me. "Pathetic, aren't you? Aren't you gonna fight me? My new knowledge makes this activity even more enjoyable, don't you agree, Cye?" she said. I didn't even look at her. "Answer me!"

CRACK!

I winced. Talpa had given her a whip to make her "playtime" even more "fun". It stung badly on my bare skin. I wanted to cry. I hid my face in my arms. "Please, let me go," I begged. 

"Humph," said Sheila. "You deserve this, you know. You were the one that got me pregnant. You have no idea what that was like, do you?"

I wanted to answer. Raising Ariel was probably a lot harder than carrying her for nine months and giving birth. She didn't have to frantically search for a job or live in a teen shelter. She's never had to struggle through high school while balancing a job, a baby, and homework. She has no heart. 

"Fascinating," said the voice of Kioko. "I'd ask to play with him, but he's your toy."

"Kioko, what are you doing in here?" asked Sheila.

"Just seeing how badly you've broken him," said Kioko. "Pretty badly, I see. I'd love to see Icefire like that."

"Wouldn't you, now," said Sheila. "And I'm sure Kayura would like to see Strata like that."

"She would, too," said Kioko. "Still, it's fascinating to see men cowering like this. It's pathetic, but it's amusing."

I curled into a tighter ball. Every bone in my body ached, it seemed. After Sheila had brought me into the Dynasty, you can guess that I was raped again. It was twice as brutal this time. Twice as degrading. I just wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground and never come out. 

Never, never again. . .

(Sage)

As we wandered down the hallways, Ariel clinging to Anubis and strangely enough Starr clinging to me, I tried not to think about what Sheila was doing to poor Cye. I could almost guess that she was tormenting him again. That hurt. 

"Shh," whispered Anubis. "I heard something."

"What?" I asked. 

"I'm not sure," said Anubis. "I think it's a guard."

A head peeked around the corner. "Anubis? Sage?"

"It's just Kojiro," I said. 

"What do you mean, JUST Kojiro?!" said Kojiro, looking rather offended. He was in subarmor, obviously just out of a fight.

I smiled. "I'm just teasing you, get a grip."

Kojiro snorted. Then, he looked at Starr and Skye. "I have one. Ariel, who are your friends?"

"Sheila came back, but this time with Sehkment's armor. She took off with Cye," I said. 

"Why I –" started Kojiro. 

"Kojiro, why is my mother so mean?" asked Ariel. 

"She knows?" said Kojiro, lowering his fighting stance. 

"Yeah, she does," I said. "The kids here, Starr and Skye, saw everything as well as Ariel. We're trying to figure out what's going on."

"Talpa's alive, too," said Ariel. 

I sighed heavily. "Here we go AGAIN," I said. "Let's try to get outside, it's not safe in here."

"I agree, it wouldn't be good to get any of these girls in and serious trouble," said Anubis. 

"Well no Dynasty moron will mess with Ariel because then they'll have to answer to her daddy or her grandfather and get their butts kicked," said Kojiro. 

"Your grandpa's a butt kicker?" said Starr. 

"Oh, yeah," said Ariel, pointing at Anubis. "He was one of those immortal people that live a really, really long time and don't age or anything."

"Cool," said Skye. "My grandfather goes to Bingo games."

"Is this a grandfather activity?" asked Anubis.

"I'll explain it to you later," I said. Though the thought of Anubis in a Bingo hall with a bunch of funny smelling old ladies WAS amusing. 

"Our best bet is to find the other Ronin Warriors, Mia, and White Blaze," said Kojiro. "So let's get going, report what happened to Ariel's dad, and then send five really ticked Ronin Warriors after Sheila."

I narrowed me eyes and sighed heavily. "How do you plan on doing that?"

I had to ask. "Easy! All we need is a bunch of super glue, about a gross of dead hamsters and. . ."


	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four: Maiden of Crystal

(Robyn)

I went home to my apartment after school and decided to have an intimate moment with a half-gallon of ice cream. I found a guy I really liked for once. Even though Cye Mouri shot me down, I could see that he wasn't a cold hearted jerk. He'd been hurt and he was still "licking his wounds", so to speak. 

I turned on the boob tube and made myself comfortable. "Static," I said. I flicked the channel. "Static again." After five channel changes no change. "Crap, I'm missing the next part of Tenchi. Stupid TV."

KA-BOOM!

"EE!" I cried, diving behind the couch. In the process, my ice cream dumped all over the couch. "Ah sh-"

WHERP! WHERP!  
"What the hell's going on around here!?" I asked. That was when the door to my apartment burst into flames. "FIRE!!!!!"

"Gotcha!" said the voice of a young man. I screamed as I was lifted into a pair of strong arms. I screamed even louder. The person carrying me jumped out of my window. Then, a bright gold bubble surrounded us and we flew to a small, secluded meadow about a mile away. 

My "rescuer" put me down. I was on the ground, shaking like a leaf. "Do not fear me, Maiden of Crystal," said the voice. I looked up to see an adolescent teenager in a strange white body armor with silvery spots around his torso, hands, and limbs. He had shoulder length brown, black hair and large blue eyes. 

"Who are you?" I asked. 

"My name is Yuli of the Chrono," said the boy. "You are the destined Maiden of Crystal, an ally of the Ronin Warriors."

"Ronin Warriors? What's a Ronin Warrior?" I asked. 

Yuli smiled and tossed me a strange, crystal pendant. "The Ronin Warriors are destined to protect the Mortal World. I am one of them, but my battle is in the Chronos, the Gates of Time itself. If you were to stay in that apartment you would have died. Your time is not up yet. Destiny is not finished with you yet. You must go to North Toyama Elementary School."

"What will I find there?" I asked. What would I possibly find at an elementary school? Milk money?

"Five of the six other Ronin Warriors. The last Ronin is the one you tried to flirt with earlier," said Yuli. 

"Cye?" I said. "Well, why, why did he turn me away?" Could his being a Ronin and me being "a normal girl" turned him away? No, that didn't sound right. 

"You will know once you meet the other five and Anubis, his father," said Yuli. A golden portal opened up behind him. It shimmered and made a soft tone. Yuli looked behind him at the portal and sighed heavily. "My time here is up. We shall meet again."

"How do I use my powers?!" I asked. 

"You will know when the time comes. Good bye!" he said, backflipping into the portal. With that, the portal closed and I was alone. I took the crystal in my hand. "Crystal, guide me to the other Ronin," I said. The crystal glowed and I was surrounded by a flash of white.

I emerged from the white outside of the school Yuli told me to go to. I held a tall, crystal staff with a glowing orbe on the tip. I was dressed in a beautiful silky white kimono and white boots. 

"Time to live up to your destiny, Robyn," I said to myself as I boldly walked into the dark hallways of the school. My staff thingy started to glow, and it made me feel safe. "I'm going to assume that the other Ronins are going to look something like that kid, Yuli. So, now where do you think you're going to go, Robyn?"

"No where, Crystal Maiden!" said a voice. I looked over and saw a woman wearing an all dark brown body armor (save for the light down covering her breasts). She had long, curly red hair and bright green eyes. 

"Who are you?" I asked, pointing my Staff at her. 

"I am Sheila, Dark Warlady of Venom," she said. "Now, let's make a deal. I'll let Cye of the Torrent live if you come with me."

"What!?" I asked as suddenly Cye appeared in front of Sheila. He wore a body armor similar to Yuli's armor, only it had light blue patches. Sheila, literally, had him on a leash. The young Ronin was on his hands and knees, She yanked the chain and he yelped. "That's cruel! Let him go!"

"Come with me and he lives," said Sheila. Cye looked up at me, tears in his eyes. 

"Robyn?" he asked. 

"Don't you dare hurt him!" I said, twirling my staff around. A glowing white ball of energy collected and struck the chain, breaking it. Sheila snarled. I tossed another ball at her, sending her reeling a few feet. She screamed out. I ran to Cye's side. He hid behind me, shaking in fear. I could see that Sheila was the reason he'd shied away from me. Sheila snarled at me and left. 

I turned my full attention to Cye. He was curled into a ball, looking at me with teary eyes. I reached out to touch his shoulder and he quickly squirmed away. "What did she do to you?" I asked. 

He didn't answer me, just looked at the floor like he was ashamed. He looked like a victim of some sort of sexual abuse. The leash. . . it hit me like a bolt of lightening. "You've been raped, haven't you?" I said.

Cye slowly nodded. "Oh, you poor dear," I said, giving him a big hug. He looked at me in disbelief, but eventually let me comfort him. 

"This wasn't the first time," he said slowly. 

"This has happened before?" I asked. "But, how?"

Cye told me about how he and Sheila used to date when he was fifteen and she was sixteen. He told me that when she'd wanted to go to bed and he didn't but she forced him to anyways. About how he hid it from his friends for nine months, and how he ran into her after their baby had been born. 

"You're a father?" I asked. 

"Yes," he said. "Ariel means so much to me. I can't let her see me like this."

"We'll give you a chance to calm down. Come on, let's get out of this hallway," I said. I took him inside the closest empty classroom. An art room. I brought him over to the sink and helped him sit up on the countertop. I turned on the faucet and he cupped his hands taking a few good drinks. 

"Now, tell me about the Ronin Warriors," I said. 

"How do you know what I am?" he said. 

I told Cye about Yuli, and he in return told me about the Ronin Warriors. Yuli, it turned out, was on punishment for stopping time so he could save the Ronin of Ice, Kojiro of the Icefire. I shook my head. Perhaps Chronos was over reacting. Yuli had done a good deed. He did not deserve to guard the Chronos for so long. 

"I was told that the other Ronins and your father, Anubis, was here," I said. 

"They are? Oh, then hopefully at least one of them has run into Ariel and her friends," said Cye. 

"You're definitely a parent," I said, smiling. "But, is your special situation why you ran from me this afternoon?"

Cye nodded. "I'm still a little nervous around women. And now that I think about it, you sort of look like Sheila with short hair."

"I feel so honored," I said sarcastically. "C'mon, let's go and find your friends and kid." Cye nodded and we left the art room. 


	6. Chapter Five

Chapter Five: Trust Rebuilt

(Cye)

I couldn't believe how kind Robyn was being. The Maiden of Crystal. What did that really mean? What kind of powers did she have? She led us down the hallway, seemingly undaunted. 

Robyn stopped and turned around. "Are you sure you're emotionally stable?"

"Absolutely," I said. I was still a little shaky, but I felt safe around Robyn. But why? We continued along, still searching for my friends. All the while there was an eerie, unsettling silence. 

"Still scared about what happened to you?" asked Robyn, sending me a look. I nodded slowly. Robyn stopped us and lifted my chin. "You eyes are like shattered crystals. They're beautiful. They reflect the ocean itself."

"What do you mean by shattered crystals?" I asked.

"Crystals of innocence, shattered by what she's done to you," said Robyn. "They're still beautiful, just hurt. I intend to fix that."  
I blinked. "What do you-" before I could finish she lightly kissed me. I looked back at her in shock. "What, what was that for?"

"Learn to trust again," said Robyn. 

I sighed heavily. "You know, you aren't the same spunky girl I ran into this afternoon."

"Oh no, I'm still me, trust me on that, just, I dunno, filled with a new wisdom," said Robyn.

I nodded. Dad wasn't always serious about things. He got VERY silly around Ariel. Let's just leave it at they play ballerina together.

I don't think I need to elaborate.

But still, it was, odd. I felt safe, yet uncomfortable. Almost vulnerable. "You're safe, for crying out loud!" said Robyn. Then, she frowned. "Oh, I get it. Still feeling shaky from your ordeal, aren't you?"

"Maybe," I said softly. "But I-"

"Look, calm down. I won't let her near you again. I promise," said Robyn. 

I blinked. "But how can you do that?" I asked. 

"I'm sure this crystal thingy has some sort of a binding power. You know, making it impossible for her to even lay a hand on you," said Robyn.

I just nodded. Robyn placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled. "Here, I have an idea. This should lighten the intensity of your emotions for a while," said Robyn. She lightly placed the orbe on my head. I wondered what she was doing, then I felt a sudden, peace. The memories of the last rape were shielded. Robyn removed the staff. 

"What did you do?" I asked. 

"Shielded those memories so you can concentrate on the big picture," said Sheila. 

"Uh, thank you- WATCH OUT!" I shouted. Robyn looked over and screamed as a horde of Dynasty soldiers lunged at us. One was on the verge of impaling her, but she was frozen in shock. I was there in a split second, grabbed her around the waist and dove out of the way. The blade grazed my subarmor. 

"Cye!" cried Robyn. I looked up to see the Dynasty soldier was ticked off. I rolled out of the way of the attack and tripped him up. Robyn finally got a grip and started to throw attacks at the Tin Cans. She was only taking them down one at a time but it certainly made my job easier. 

"CRYSTAL GLARE!" cried Robyn, sending out a good sized attack. It took down quite a few soldiers, but many still remained. The hallway was getting ridiculously crowded. The fight, on my part, was hard, and I didn't have a chance to steal a spear or armor up. 

Two Tin Cans grabbed me and tossed me into a door leading to the now deserted playground. I screamed as I was tossed straight through the glass. I shielded my eyes, not wanting to loose an eye. I stood up, unharmed. The Tin Cans roared and charged. I had conveniently landed right by a strange pole with some sort of a basket on top. I jumped on top and send a slamming kick down into the crowd of Tin Cans. I jumped out of the way as Robyn sent an attack the way of the Tin Cans.

To say the least, they didn't last very long. 

"That, was a close one," I said. Robyn smiled, and I sent one back. "Nice job."

"You didn't do too bad yourself," said Robyn. 

"Hey! Cye!" 

I turned around. The other Ronins, White Blaze, Dad, Ariel, and her friends came running over. "We were worried sick!" said Kojiro. "Who's the chick with the staff thingy?"

"The Maiden of Crystal?!" said Dad. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey, your friend Yuli of the Chrono saved my life and told me I had this destiny as this Maiden of Crystal," said Robyn. "So I find myself here and rescue Cye from the Warlady of Venom."

"Warlady?" asked Rowen. 

"Sheila has the Armor of Venom," I said. 

"That's what I've been TRYING to tell you!" said Sage. 

"Well sorry!" said Rowen. 

"Hmm?" I asked. 

Starr cleared her throat. "As you know we saw your ex wife kidnap you into the Dynasty. We eventually went inside and Ariel told Skye and myself about the Ronin Warriors. Sage found us and we told him what we know. Then we ran into your father and told him. Eventually we ran into Kojiro, who made up a plan involving dead hamsters. We just ran into the others outside when we heard the blast."

I gulped. "Sheila and I were never married," I said. 

"Oh," said Starr. She gave Ariel an odd look. Ariel had a hurtful look in her eyes. I tried not to look at her. 

"Well, we have to watch out for Talpa and the Warlords, boys," said Ryo. "And, Robyn. Uh, exactly what IS the Maiden of Crystal?"

"A sort of ally to the Ronin Warriors," said Dad. "There used to be seven Maidens. The staffs of Gold, Silver, Topaz, Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald were all destroyed a long time ago. Only the Crystal Staff remains. They rarely helped the Ronins, only when they felt it necessary. This was mainly due to the Maiden of Gold, who was never very good about helping others. Soon, they were all killed and six of the staffs were destroyed. The Crystal Staff mysteriously vanished and has just now shown up."

"I have a feeling Chronos had a hand in that," said Robyn, "considering Yuli gave me the crystal that transformed me into this."  
"That's odd," said Dad. "Chronos must have had a good reason to save that crystal, because he's very particular about playing with time, which is why Yuli is on punishment."

"And it was my fault he's on punishment," said Kojiro. 

"Would you stop that!?" said Kento. "I don't think anything could have changed Yuli's mind and it looks like it WAS the only way to save you. Sometimes being a Ronin Warrior is about making sacrifices and taking chances."

"I know, but, when you're the one the sacrifice was made for. . ." he said, letting the sentence hang. 

"Our best bet right now if to just try and figure out how we're going to destroy Talpa once and for all," said Ryo. "Let's head back to the house, we'll figure it out from there, all right?"

We all nodded in agreement and started back to the house.


	7. Chapter Six

Chapter Six: Explanation

(Cye)

Once we got home, I pulled Ariel aside into her room. Skye and Starr remained downstairs with everyone else. "Why did you lie to me?" she asked. 

I ushered her over to her bed and sat down. I sat down next to her. "Ariel, it's a very, very hard story for me to tell you and I can't even give you all the details. But I promise you'll hear the whole thing when you're older, all right?"

"Okay," said Ariel. "But I want to know why you lied to me."

I swallowed hard. "When I was younger, fifteen, I met your mother. She's a year older than I am, so she was sixteen. I thought she was pretty and she asked me to meet her after school. I was in high school at the time. When we met, she asked me out on a date and we started dating."

"Like boyfriend and girlfriend?" asked Ariel.

"Yes," I said, "like boyfriend and girlfriend. I thought I was in love, I guess. I would've followed her off the end of the world. Then I began to notice things were, odd, in our relationship. She seemed to be controlling me. Now I have to have some control over you since you're only six years old, that's a part of raising a child, but you have some freedom, right?"

"Uh huh," said Ariel, nodding her head. 

"Well, she sort of, I don't know, bossed me around a lot. Then one night I went over to the place she was staying. We planned on watching a movie and having dinner. Neither of those things happened. Your mother instead did something very, very, very bad to me. You remember the 'Good Touch, Bad Touch' videos you saw last year in Kindergarten that you watched?" I said. 

Ariel gawked. "You mean she did that kind of stuff to you?" she said. 

"On a higher level, but yes," I said. "I'll tell you exactly what that was in a few years."

"Well, where was I when all this happened?" I asked. 

"Well, although I didn't know it, you were in your mother's tummy," I said. She left a month after the incident. I ran into her nearly a year later, just a few days after you were born."

"You mean that you didn't know about me until after I was born?" said Ariel. 

I nodded. "You see, we were young when you were born. Your mother was seventeen and I was sixteen when you were born. She wanted to place you in an orphanage, the one Ryo talks about."

"There?" said Ariel fearfully. 

I held her tightly. "I was scared for you. I hardly knew you, but, I couldn't let you go," I said. "I took you in, and then she left us."

"You saved me?" she said. 

"Yes, I did," I said softly. Ariel started to sob quietly. "Shh, it's okay, it's okay."

"I love you, Daddy," said Ariel. 

"I love you, too," I said softly. 

(Kojiro)

I had a funny feeling that Cye had been raped again. Sheila, while I hadn't actually met her, seemed to have some serious mental problems. If she'd do something once, what would stop her from repeating it? Obviously we couldn't. Cye had been in her clutches. I wanted to ask him. He seemed okay, but, still, it bothered me to think it might've happened again. 

Ariel came downstairs and started talking to her friends. The conversation seemed pretty solemn. Cye same down soon after. "Cye," I said. "Can you come over here?"

"Sure," said Cye. The two of us sat down in the kitchen at the big island in the center. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Did she-"

"Again?" said Cye. "Yes. Robyn shielded my memories. It's only temporary so I don't wig out in the middle of a battle or something."

"Are you okay?"

"I'll tell you when the binding is gone."

"Oh," I said. "Well, what do you want to do about Sheila?"

Cye blinked. "What do you mean?"

I winced. "You know, what do you want to happen? Kill her? Leave her in the Dynasty to rot?"

"Well, I don't want to kill her," said Cye. "I mean, I don't want Ariel to know me as a killer. Especially the killer of her mother, no matter how sick and sadistic she is."

"I see," I said.

"She knows her mother is a bad person. I just told her SOME of the details," said Cye. 

My eyes widened. "You didn't tell her about-"

"No, no, of course not!" said Cye. "I can't explain the rape to her. She doesn't know about the birds and the bees yet, you know that. I can't explain too much, but she knows that there is a good reason I didn't talk to her about her mother."

"Are you sure you did the right thing?" I asked. "Don't you think she's too young?"  
"Yes, I do. But she's seen a war. She's seen the Dynasty. There's not much else I can shield from her," said Cye. "And call me crazy, but I have a funny feeling she's next in line to inherit the Armor of the Torrent."

"You're kidding," I said. Cye shook his head. "But how can you tell?"

"How long can we fight?" said Cye. "We're getting older. Not OLD older, but right now we're past our prime for the fight. We keep in shape, but soon we're going to be going into our late twenties and early thirties. We're going to all start settling down. I've already begun that. I have a daughter, we're close to graduation, and it can't go on forever. And we'll eventually need to stop, you know that as well as I do."

"I see," I said. "But how soon?"  
"I don't know," he said. "I just don't know."

(Anubis)

It was very evident that the Ronins and Mia were struggling to put a plan together. We all spent the majority of the night at the kitchen table and several pots of coffee. Ariel, Starr, and Skye had all been sent to bed. Once again Talpa had managed to take the entire city captive, minus Mia, who always seems to avoid capture. Basically, we couldn't come in contact with Starr or Skye's parents. To say the least it was a long night. 

Robyn, surprisingly, shot out some very interesting ideas. None of them would work but she was a very active participant. She sat next to Cye and periodically seemed to be check on him.

When we finally did give it up with no plan, I pulled my son aside. "Kojiro told me what you told him," I said. 

"I know," said Cye. 

"Are you all right?"

"I've been better," he said. 

I sighed. "There was something else I noticed."

"What, Dad?" asked Cye.

"Robyn, the Maiden of Crystal, seems to have taken a special interest in you. What kind of an interest?" I asked. 

"I don't know," said Cye. "She seems to be protective of me and seems to really care, but, I don't know why."

"She may have her reasons. One of them might be love," I said. With that, I walked away.


	8. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven: Talpa's Plan

(Robyn)

After a good night's sleep, all who would be battling were ready to go. Mia stayed back with the girls. Ariel and her friends looked worried. "Don't worry, Ariel, I'll take care of your dad," I said. 

Cye blinked. "Huh?"

"I'll make sure you come home to her okay," I said. I smiled. "Just relax."

Anubis sent me a look. "Why do you seem so protective of my son?"

I sent him a smile. "Hey, he's cute," I said. Cye blushed as the other Ronins snickered. "Lay off." That effectively shut them up. I grinned. "And he does have some hidden emotional problems. He's gonna want a mature female sounding board once it wears off."

We all took off towards the city. I did not know what to expect, except that I should probably go with what I was good at, which right now consisted of shooting energy balls at the enemy. Whatever worked. I couldn't worry about style. I had to worry about what worked.

"Well?" asked Ryo. "Anyone have an idea? NOT involving dead hamsters?"  
Kojiro fumed. I wasn't sure I wanted to know why.

"We need to get inside and find our what his plan is. THEN we can come up with a plan that will work," said Rowen. 

"Why?" asked Kento. 

"Can you use a strategy for basketball in baseball?" asked Rowen.  
Kento's face scrunched up like he was thinking about what Rowen had just said to him. "No. Oh, I get it," said Kento.

"So we send our stealthiest person in," said Ryo. "Rowen?"  
Rowen gulped, suddenly not so sure about his plan. "Why do you say I'm the stealthiest?" 

"Because your weapon makes you the best sniper, you're the fastest, and you're the most likely to sneak up on someone," said Kojiro. "Good luck!"

Rowen frowned. I laughed. "Oh, don't be afraid, you'll do fine. I'll go with you if it'll make you feel better," I said. 

"Uh, thanks Robyn," said Rowen. 

"Now that that's settled, let's send you two inside," said Anubis. "Robyn, you can get the both of you out of there, right?"  
"I think so," I said. I concentrated on a tree. "If I can teleport into a tree, can I teleport across dimensions?"  
"Most likely," said Anubis. I nodded, trying to do that. I closed my eyes, tapping my staff to the ground. I opened them perched on top of the tree. I jumped down, taking a bow.

"Ham," said Kento. 

"Now I'll try and bring Kento with me to the top of the tree," I said. 

"Wait I-" said Kento as I brought us to the top. "AH! NO! I HATE HEIGHTS!" I saw Kento clinging to the next tree over. I snickered as I brought us back down. "That wasn't funny."

"Yes it was," said Sage. 

"C'mon, Rowen," I said. Rowen nodded. "Okay, grip the staff, because this time it's going to be different."

"I understand," he said. I concentrated after he gripped the staff. 

(Rowen)

Robyn and I found ourselves in the rafters of Talpa's throne room. Below we could see the three Dark Warlords, two Warladies *cough, cough* witches *cough, cough*, and Kayura. Talpa sat on his throne, like a meeting was about to begin. 

"Sheila, report what you have come up with on the capture of the Maiden of Crystal," said Talpa. Sheila stepped forward. I looked her over. From when I'd first met her, she seemed much, much less appealing. Given she did have a nice body and nice hair, but she was evil, and she'd done something to one of my best friends that could never be forgiven.

"Well, the little Chrono brat told her about her destiny so she was already in her robes when I attacked her. However, I did learn that earlier today she was flirting with my former boyfriend. So I decided to play a game. I told her he'd live if she came with me, but she freed him and then hit me!" said Sheila. 

"That's what you get when you don't take care of your toys, Sheila, and if I do remember, did Torrent not knock you up last time you played with him?" said Cale. 

"Shut up, and I've since had my reproductive organs removed," said Sheila. "So I could play with him all I want and never get anything. Which is what I wanted to do! I'm going to have to go catch him again."

Robyn seemed to be watching intently. They were planning on capturing her. I had to make sure that didn't happen. We continued to watch on.

"Why do we even need the Crystal Maiden?" asked Dais. "She is just a girl with a staff. All it has done is shot out harmless energy balls."

"They're PAINFUL, you dolt," said Sheila. 

"She is the last of the Maidens, as you know. That means the powers off all the Maidens have entered that staff. If I can control that staff, I can control the Mortal World," said Talpa. "Then those pathetic Ronin Warriors will be no match, with or without Hariel's armor of Inferno. Even that little Chrono brat can't stop THIS from happening. I'll go into the Chronos and impale him myself. With the very staff he presented to the Maiden of Crystal. Won't that be ironic?"

"It's that powerful?!" said Osiris. 

"But Talpa, I thought only the Crystal Maiden can wield the staff," said Kioko. 

"True, very true, but I WILL harness that power!" said Talpa. 

"We've figured them out," I whispered. "Let's get out of here." Robyn nodded, then, disaster struck. The beams we were hiding in cracked and fell. 

"WAHHH!"  
"Ronins!? Crystal Maiden!? They were spying on us!" said Kioko. 

I stood up, taking a fighting stance. Robyn held her staff at the ready, pointing it at Talpa. "I'll destroy you, Talpa! I will!" said Robyn. 

"No you won't," said Talpa. He stood up and took out a sword. Robyn threw a ball at him. It bounced off Talpa and hit Sheila. Talpa hardly noticed Sheila's grumbling as he struck Robyn down with a black ball of energy. 

"Robyn!" I cried. Before I could try to help her Cale and Dais grabbed me. "Hey! Let me go you losers!"

Talpa laughed to himself. "I want them both in the darkest dungeon. Badamon shall help me with my new toy."

"You'll never get away with this!" I cried as Cale and Dais dragged me away and Osiris hefted Robyn over his shoulder. I continued to struggle, even after they threw me into the shoot leading to the dungeon.

(Robyn)

I awoke sometime later. I was in a dark, dank dungeon, lying on a cool, damp floor. Hard, like cement. Question was, where was I? Where was Rowen? I had to know if he was okay! "Rowen?" I asked. "Are you there?"

"Yes. Talpa has your staff. He's going to try and use it," said Rowen. He was leaning up against a wall about ten feet away from me, his arms crossed and a faraway look in his eyes. I guess most geniuses have that far away look, you know?

"But if he does that, then the world is in danger!" I said. If he got so much as a fraction of it working, the other Ronins could be in serious trouble! And it sounded like even Yuli couldn't help. Talpa seemed to have some sort of a grudge against the Guard at the Gates of Time. I'd have to ask the others later.

"That's why we have to get out of here, before he does figure out how to use it," said Rowen. "We have to hope the others come through, or else all is lost."

All would be lost. I let the words sink in. This really WAS serious. More serious than I'd thought. I had a huge responsibility to take care of. One that a whole world depended apon. But, could I handle it?


	9. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight: Yuli's Vision

(Yuli)

Despite what I'd thought when I'd first arrived at the Chronos, it wasn't so bad playing Time Guardian. Chronos wasn't that bad of a master, and I wasn't living a life of solitude. I missed Mia and the others, but I did have a pet and a few friends. Stopwatch, my dog, ran over to me from my seat on my bed. "Hey boy," I said. I rubbed the brown dog's head. "Good boy," I said. 

KNOCK-KNOCK.

"Come in," I said. I lifted my head as Chronos entered my room. He was followed by Father Time himself. King Chronos is a tubby man with golden hair and a body shaped like a clock. King Chronos is a bit of a rude loser at times, but I don't argue with the ruler of time. He makes the rules I live by. He's the one who decides if I am allowed back home once I've reached fourteen physically.

Father Time is my favorite person in the Chronos. He's a tall, old man in a light blue robes with little hour glasses imprinted on it. He always carries a tall staff with an hour glass on the tip, and is very kind to me. He is the only one besides the other Ronins who think I did the right thing by letting Kojiro live. Sad that Chronos didn't always listen to his wise advice.

"Yuli, my boy," said King Chronos, sitting awkwardly next to me. "You've done a fine job as the Time Guardian. A splendid job!"

"You seemed to hate him when he first came here for saving that boy's life. No harm will come from him or his descendants. So why punish him?" said Father Time. 

"Because he played with time, YOUR creation," said Chronos. "I was wondering if you'd like to take over after I'm done."

"What?!" I asked. 

Chronos pointed at his body. "See? This ticker is at eleven thirty p.m."

"I've noticed," I said. 

"It moves to a new minute once a year. At midnight, the old Chronos dies and a new Chronos takes over. You could rule time with my job," said King Chronos. 

"I'm sorry, I'm going to have to decline," I said. 

"What do you mean you foolish boy?" asked Chronos. 

"He has friends back in his world. And I have noticed him taking a few sneak peaks at the week before he is to return," said Father Time. "I think he's fallen in love with this young Ariel girl."

I blushed. I had been wondering what the guys would be doing when I returned. I happened to see Ariel. She'd grown up in a really pretty red headed young girl. Very beautiful. She'd be that one day. From a little shrimp who'd followed me around and before my eyes had grown up into a beautiful young woman. "Maybe. . ."

Chronos groaned. "Well, I can't force it apon you, but it isn't a bad idea, young man."

"I miss my friends. I couldn't leave them forever," I said. "Ten years will be bad enough for them."

"You know, Yuli, I believe I can show you something that might allow you to see them. At the time of two years into your service, they have another attack, as you know," said Father Time. "The Crystal Maiden and Strata are captured. You should report what they were to report to Wildfire for them."

"I can?" I asked. 

"Peek in and see what Talpa has been up to. Then you can appear to them in a hologram and report your findings to them," said Father Time. "You may be interested in what Talpa is up to."

"I am!" I said. "Where to!?"

"The Gates themselves, young man, where else?" said Chronos. I got up and grabbed my staff on my way out. I started to walk down the gold and silver hallways towards the Gate of Time. I wasn't always on duty, they did let me sleep, but I was the main guardian. 

My alternate, Cleo, was waiting for me. Cleo is a pink centaur with brown hair. She held her own Key of Time with her, which was a long, golden staff with a clock on one end and a key shape on the other. Unlike me, however, she could not see events in time unless I let her. I can tamper with time. Cleo only guards it. "Hi, Yuli," she said. 

"Hey, Cleo," I said, waving to her. Cleo was a good friend of mine. We sometimes stayed in the Gates together, but only once in a while. "Chronos is allowing me to help the other Ronins."

"How so?" asked Cleo, clicking one of her hooves.

"They sent two spies, one of whom was the Crystal Maiden. She and Rowen of the Strata- the one you think is cute- were captured," I said. 

"I want to help, to!" said Cleo. 

"Uh, Cleo, I don't know-"

"Aw, at least let me keep you company!" said Cleo. 

"Oh fine," I said. "But if I catch you peeking in on Rowen while he's in the shower again-"

"I won't!" said Cleo. The two of us opened the Gates and stepped inside. 

The actually Time Stream is beautiful. It's a long, long, LONG hallway of mirrors, each for a different year. All the way from when time began and forever on. I'm only allowed to see up until the year I return to the other Ronins as a fourteen year old. I actually got to see all sorts of cool stuff in history, like when the Ancient battled Talpa. THAT was cool. I got to see a lot of stuff. I saw my parent's wedding. I saw many, many events in world history. Yeah, I kinda became a history buff after all this. 

Once, I got curious. I wanted to see what happened the night Cye got Ariel. It was really emotional. I watched it unfold in awe. Cye looked so scared, so shocked, but when he held Ariel, I could see a twinkle in his eyes I'd never seen before, one that replaced his very last bit of innocence that he's lost just nine months earlier. Fatherly love. He really did care about Ariel. I watched as he made the heart-wrenching decision of leaving us for Tokyo. I saw how he met Kojiro, and I even saw the scene where Kojiro left his home. I saw Ariel grow up, right to the point where she met me. I missed her.

I finally found where I wanted to be. The mirror that represented the year Talpa captured Rowen and Robyn. I peeked in on the exact moments that he and Badamon were trying to open Robyn's staff. "That thing is beautiful!" said Cleo. "Is that really the Crystal Maiden's staff?"

"Yes it is," I said. "And there is no way I'm going to let her die."

"Why's that?" asked Cleo. 

"Can't tell you," I said teasingly. 

"Aw, c'mon, Yuli, you're the closest thing I have to a best girlfriend in this whole place!" she said.

"Best GIRLFRIEND!?" I said in alarm. "I'm a guy!"  
"Like I said, the next best thing," said Cleo. "Look, let's go see what this Talpa guy is gonna pull and go fix it already!"

"Okay, okay, fine, fine!" I said. I pointed the blade at the mirror. 

_Gates of Time_

Hear my cry

Open the doors

I must know why

In a glowing gold light, our reflections turned into a scene staring inside of Talpa's castle. 


	10. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine: Visitation

(Yuli)

This is what Cleo and I saw. . .

Talpa paced back and forth before the table where the staff of the Crystal Main lay. Badamon floated on the other side of the table, looking through a book of chants and spells. Both looked tired and exceptionally annoyed. They were obviously trying to unlock the Crystal Staff, but were having no such luck. "Badamon, I have not been able to access any of the powers I need!" said Talpa. "I want that power!"

Badamon sighed heavily, looking up from his book of spells. "This Staff is only meant to power the Maiden of Crystal, Master Talpa. Perhaps there is a code we can break to tap into its powers," he said, closing the book. It disappeared in a puff of smoke. "That would be the only way we could use those powers."

Talpa's eyes glowed. "But WHAT spell?! There is no way I can take this power!" said Talpa, slamming his fists down onto the table. The staff shook, and Badamon caught it before it fell to the floor. 

Badamon gulped. "Well, perhaps you must question the Crystal Maiden. Perhaps she knows the key to unlocking the powers."

"No, she is still young. If she has it she wouldn't know how to use it," said Talpa. "But perhaps we could discover how to control her, and therefore, control the staff she holds."

"Excellent idea, Master Talpa," said Badamon. "Excellent idea, indeed. However we can't control her. Her will and power levels would cancel out any of our attempts, even if I tried to possess her myself."

Talpa looked over at Badamon. "Then how do you suppose we do this?"  
"I have no idea," said Nether Priest. "Perhaps we could force her to watch Strata being tortured, then she may weaken."

"I like it! Even if it doesn't work I can still torture one of those pathetic Ronins! Although I would rather watch Sheila play with Torrent, this would still be fun," said Talpa. 

"What is it that you have against that boy?" asked Badamon.

"He is the reason Anubis left us. Because he is the father of that Ronin brat, his hold to the Dynasty and my control over him began to slowly weaken, as did his strength. His paternity to the boy was pulling him towards the Mortal Realm. Finally, the Ancient snapped that hold all those years ago," said Talpa. "Not to mention he and Chrono made a fool out of me."  
"Yes, that was- awful! Just awful how they did that to you!" said Badamon, although he did agree that his master DID look like a complete and total fool during that fight. "So we bring the two here and torture Strata. Got it!"

"Well, looks like I DO have to go to the others," I said, closing off the mirror. Cleo blinked. Then, she grinned. 

"Can I come?"

I frowned. Cleo in the Mortal Realm would be a problem, especially when she started to make faces at the other Ronins. Which she WOULD do.

"I don't know, Cleo, you'll get into trouble," I said. 

Cleo shook her head. "No I won't! I won't make ANY moves on them, I promise! Please, please, pretty please, pretty-"

"No, you have to stay here and guard the time stream," I said.

"I'll guard the time stream."

I turned around. "Father Time?" I asked. 

Father Time nodded. "Yes, Yuli. Let her go. If she gets into trouble, she'll get double duty for misbehaving. That's MY order."

"Deal! Done!" said Cleo. "I'll be perfect!"

"If you don't want to, though," I said. 

Cleo stuck her tongue out. "I bet I can! Let's go!!!!!!"

(Cye)

Over two hours passed, and still no sign of either Rowen or Robyn. "It shouldn't be taking this long," said Dad. We had since gone back to the house to wait for them to return. Besides, we all got hungry.

I nodded. "I hope they're okay. Rowen can take care of himself but Robyn's only been able to handle a few Tin Cans with my help. Can she handle the Dynasty itself?" I asked.

"I'm sure they're all right, Cye," said Mia. That was when we heard that strange sound from outside. We took a second to exchange looks before we all scrambled for the door. Ariel and her friends were slightly quicker and got out before us. As for Dad, Kojiro, Kento, Sage, Ryo, and myself, well, we all got stuck in the door. 

"Yuli! Pink horse-lady!" I heard Ariel say. After Mia pushed us all out the door with assistance from White Blaze, we all looked up to see Yuli and a pink centaur standing before the girls. Yuli was in subarmor and held his bladed staff. The strange centaur held a staff with a key on one end. 

"Yuli!" cried Mia, running to Yuli and embracing him. Yuli hugged back. 

"I don't have much time, Mia," said Yuli. He gestured to the centaur. "This is my friend, Cleo. My alternate in the time stream."

"Alternate? Then who's in the time stream now?" asked Dad.

"Father Time himself," said Yuli. "The oldest man alive. But he's okay. He's like the Ancient. It takes a LOT to bring him down. But anyways, Robyn and Rowen haven't returned because Talpa found them out. He has them in a dungeon and is trying to unlock Robyn's staff. He isn't having much luck, though. But they STILL need to be rescued."

"How did you know all that?!" asked Ryo.

"Father Time and King Chronos gave him permission to look in on you guys while he's guarding the time stream. But he can't tell you all everything. That's tampering with time, and although he's good at it he can't do it all the time unless it's necessary," said Cleo. 

Yuli looked a little irritated, but he tried to ignore her. "What matters now is that you guys go save Robyn and Rowen. You guys CAN do it, and Robyn is the key. The Crystal Maiden is very powerful. The Maidens were all powerful, until six were destroyed. The Crystal Maiden is the last one, and she has all the powers of all the Maidens. That's why I had the staff. Father Time stepped in and saved it to be brought to Robyn in this time."

The portal opened up behind them again. "Aw, that was too fast!" complained Cleo. 

Yuli shook his head. "You never get that much time in the Mortal Realm, Cleo. C'mon, we gotta get back before King Chronos gets mad."

"Yeah, the old timer will really go off if he finds out," said Cleo. 

"Why do I get the feeling that was a bad pun?" asked Sage.

Yuli shook his head. "The man is half a clock."

"Bye, Yuli!" said Ariel. Yuli smiled at Ariel. 

"See you around, Ariel," he said. With that, he and Cleo stepped through the Gates of Time, and we gone. 

Dad blinked. "We must go into the Dynasty and rescue Robyn and Rowen."

"Yes, we must," I said. "It's the only way."


	11. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten: Robyn's Rescue

(Robyn)

I awoke the following "morning" to our capture. I felt weak and helpless. Rowen was pacing back and forth, like he was waiting for something to happen. He looked over at me and smiled. 

"Glad to see you're up and about," he said. 

"Up, but not about," I said. 

"Well, the guys will come for us," said Rowen with a sly grin on his face. "I know they will."  
I sighed heavily. I didn't know "the guys" as well as Rowen did. He was one of "the guys", I wasn't, and the only one I knew remotely well was Cye. I knew I like him, I knew he had a daughter from when he was sixteen, I knew he'd lost his virginity through a rape and the rapist was the mother of his child, and a few other things, like his major. But I found myself wanting to know more about Cye Mouri. Why, I wasn't sure, but I had a feeling I had romantic tensions for the guy.

Suddenly, the clicking sound of someone at the door to the cell could be heard. Rowen stood just outside of the door, sending me a wink. A guard walked in and Rowen immediately pummeled it. "Robyn! Go! Get your staff!"

I ran out of the cell. The world could depend on my getting that staff. I concentrated on it, feeling where it was located. Don't ask me how, I just, knew. I ran as hard as I could. Stairs, flew up them. Hallways, practically was shot out of a cannon down them. Time seemed to pass in a second, but last an eternity. Was Yuli on my side here? I respected that kid, despite his rather severe punishment and age. The boy was still twelve, physically, at least, but who was to say how much knowledge the boy had gained in the Chronos?

But, this was something I needed to do myself. Yuli couldn't take my hand and walk me through the whole thing. I had to learn the staff's powers myself. Yuli had a much more important job; guarding the Time Gateway. My job was important, but I couldn't pull him from his responsibility more than I already had. This was my own way. This was my destiny.

Finally, after what felt like a cruel eternity, I found Talpa's throne room. There, lying on a table in the center of the room, was my staff. I ran over and picked it up, practically hugging the darn thing. I don't think I'd felt so secure in my entire life. The world wasn't in as much danger anymore. 

Sadly, I still was. 

"Crystal Maiden, I'm so glad you've decided to come here and tell me how your petty little staff here works."

I gasped as I turned to see the Dynasty Master himself staring me down. I held my staff out at him. Talpa laughed heartily. "That didn't work last time, now did it?" he said coldly. I kept the staff up anyways. He had to have a weak spot. But where!? I didn't know, and I didn't like not knowing. Talpa scared me.

Slowly, the demon advanced on me. I backed away. That was when I heard the doors shut. "I WAS planning on bringing in Strata with us, but he's gotten away and is hiding somewhere. Then I could torture him until you told me about the staff. But not it appears as if you'll just have to tell me now."

"Never!" I said. "You can't have my powers! I won't let you take them!"

"You WILL give me your powers! I COMMAND you to!" yelled Talpa. 

I glared at him. "You don't control me! I'm NOT one of your Dynasty puppets! And I never will be! So lay off! You'll get no where with me!" I said. I finally got fed up and tried to hit him with the staff. No effect. If he felt it he didn't show it.

"Leave Robyn alone!"

"What the-" said Talpa, but before he could react a flash of light blue and auburn stood in front of me. 

"Cye!" I cried. 

Cye turned around to smile at me. "Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here in one piece," he said. "Stand back. ARMOR OF THE TORRENT, DAO SHIN!"

I had to close my eyes as Cye was consumed in a bright flash of white. When the flash was down, I saw him armored up and ready in the Armor of the Torrent. He held a deadly looking yari in his grip. A tall bladed helmet was on his head. He stood almost protectively infront of me. 

I felt really safe in that spot. 

Talpa's eyes began to glow their infamous red glow. "Well, well, well, Torrent, we meet again."

"I don't know why you didn't die before, but I can assure you you'll die now," said Cye. His yari was pointed at Talpa. He pushed the head up and back swiftly, and I saw the two large claws close in. A man gripper. Amazing. That Ancient guy came up with some pretty cool toys. 

I had a pretty cool toy, too. I stepped out from behind Cye and stood next to him. I was going to fight with him or die trying. "Do you know his weakness?" I asked. 

"You need a really powerful blast to get his guard down, then he gets a little easier. Also, he's a rotting corpse inside of the armor. Get a piece of it off and if you can hold your lunch he's gone for," said Cye. 

Rotting corpse? Lovely. Sounds like a blind date I went on once- never mind.

"You two will both die at the hands-" Talpa started. 

"-of the Evil Dynasty," Cye and I finished in unison. 

Talpa's eyes glowed. "DON'T DO THAT!"

Eventually, we were backed all the way to the door. Cye stared down Talpa for a second, then slammed into the wooden door, taking it down. I fell. He threw his yari on his back, picked me up and started to dart down the hallway. Talpa went after us. The one disadvantage Talpa had as far as being a walking army went was that all those weapons weighed him down by a LOT. Way more than Cye's armor, weapon, and I weighed him down. We easily got away.

We hid in a sort of storage room. There were bags of different grains all around, as well as beans, nuts, and dried berries. "A pantry," I casually stated. 

Cye had taken time to armor down into subarmor. "You all right?"  
"I'm fine, thank you," I said. "You?"

"All right. Whatever shield that's shielding me from my emotions toward the rape is working," he said. "And that'll be good since I just know Sheila and I are going to go into battle."

"What makes you say that?" I asked. 

"The Venom and Torrent armors are always adversaries. The rape, Ariel, and our relationship towards each other just adds to the already thick tension. She tried to blame Ariel's birth on me, you know," he said. 

I sighed heavily. "I don't want to make a comment since I don't know enough about that yet, but I do understand that there is tension between the two of you. How did she get at you, you know, this time?"

"Got to me before I could get my armor orbe. Teasingly she dangled it above my head a few times, but with my hands tied like they were, it was almost as bad as the thing itself," said Cye. "I can only guess she was very ticked off when her chew toy got away."  
I nodded. "Well, I don't know what to say."

"Mind keeping watch while I catch a few Z's?" asked Cye with a stiff yawn. "There wasn't much sleep for any of us last night."

"Go ahead. But you're going to wake up the instant something comes in here, got it?" I said. 

"That's what I hoped you'd say," he said. I rested his head on a sack of grains and was soon peacefully sleeping. Quietly, I snuck over and gently ran my fingers through his hair. So soft, so silky. I smiled. Then, quietly and gently, I kissed his forehead, then went back to watch the door.


	12. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven: Mother vs. Father

(Cye)

I woke up on my own terms. Robyn was playing with her hair. She looked over at me. 

"You weren't supposed to wake up yet!" she said.

"Huh?" I said. Suddenly, I had an odd idea of what had happened. I ran my hand through my hair. I was right. She'd made many, many tiny braids throughout my hair. "How bored did you get?"

"Not very," said Robyn. "Let me help you with that." I said cross legged as the two of us undid the braids. It was almost silly. It was awkward for me, considering my fingers were thicker from the subarmor, but Robyn's soft fingers were gentle and got most of them out. 

"Ariel and Kojiro did this to me as a joke once," I said. "She was three years old, I was nineteen, and he was twenty. I was taking a nap on the couch and Kojiro had been showing Ariel how to make braids by using yarn. Well, he got the idea to show her how to do it on my head. I woke up about an hour later and didn't notice for a good half hour, when I looked in the mirror and screamed."

"Did they get a picture?" asked Robyn.

"Sadly, yes," I said. "I looked like a pot head."

Robyn shook her head. "You must have looked ridiculous."  
"I did," I said. "But it was a little on the amusing side." I narrowed my eyes. "Robyn, when Talpa had you cornered, why didn't you teleport?"

"Panicked and didn't think of it," said Robyn. "But now that you mention it I could have-"

"Well, well, well, Maiden brat, hands off him. He's MINE."

We looked up. There, standing above us, was Sheila. She looked mad. I leapt to my feet, taking a fighting stance. "I got this."

"What!?" asked Robyn, joining me. "You've got to be kidding me! After what she did?!"

"I need to stand up to bullies like her, or else I'll be running scared for the rest of my life," I said. "I don't care if she's female or if she's the mother of my child, she's cruel, sick, and sadistic."

"Thank you for the compliments," said Sheila with a dark grin. "Let's fight."

"Will do," I said. 

"Better yet, we should take this outside. I wouldn't want this grains to get stained from your blood," she said.

"Fine," I said. "Outside it is. Robyn?"

Robyn nodded and teleported us outside of the storage room.

We stood outside on top of the roof. Robyn was on the side. She told me she'd stay out of it unless Sheila really began to whip me. I reluctantly agreed. But that was after Robyn mentioned Ariel being without a father. Low, but it worked. 

Sheila looked almost identical to Sehkment in the old armor. She withdrew two swords and clashed them together. "This'll be interesting."

"Yes it will," I said. Knowing Sheila, I knew she'd attack first. Which she did. She raised one of her katanas, let out a cry, and charged. I sidestepped the attack and used my yari to clutch the katana. She then sliced at my with the other. Before it could hit I tossed her across the roof. I charged after her. 

But Sheila was waiting and tripped me, sending me flying. I landed on the ground with a thump as she jumped down to try and impale me. I rolled out of the way and kicked her feet out from below. She screamed as I pinned her with my foot. I thought I'd won until she tripped me up. As she tried to lunge on top of me, I used my legs to my advantage and kicked her stomach, sending her upwards. 

Robyn had teleported to the ground with us. She was, naturally, rooting me on. "Go Cye!" she cried. "Kick her butt!"

Sheila then prepared her sure kill, but I prepared mine as well. The attacks were released in unison. I had to make sure my attack was stronger or else her attack would overpower mine and send back poisoned water at me. My main weakness. Part of why Torrent and Venom were adversaries. The battle there was the most dangerous. 

"SUPAH WAVE SMASHA!"

"SNAKE FANG STRIKE!!!"  
Sheila was more powerful than I'd thought as I was struck down by the venomous water. Robyn screamed. 

"Cye!" she cried. Then, she stared Sheila down. "That. Is. IT! I. Am. PISSED!"

(Robyn)

I couldn't believe it. She'd taken him down. He was alive, but hurting very badly. I leapt before him, feeling the powers of the staff suddenly beginning to increase. I pointed the staff and her and blasted her halfway across the battlefield.

"AHHH!!"

"Serves you right for hurting the man I love!" I said. 

"WHAT!?" asked Sheila, running back over. "You do NOT love him! I don't give you permission to love him! He's mine!"

I growled. "No he isn't! He's his own person. He raised YOUR baby virtually alone! He struggled between high school, a job, college, and the baby. You RAPED him TWICE. And now THIS! I am NOT going to let the likes of YOU get away with this!!!"

Sheila was stunned. I think Cye was too. Before either could respond I opened up another attack, sending her back again. She got up and prepared to Snake Fang Strike me. I stood there, waiting for it. 

"Robyn, move!" Cye yelled. Then he winced. The Warrior of Torrent was in pain, and I had to win this battle soon to get him to safety. 

Sheila sent out the attack. I lifted my staff and created a protective barrier. The attack bounced off and hit Sheila. She screamed. I really liked causing that woman to be in pain. I took down the barrier and attack again. I wasn't going to stop until to she retreated in tears.

At this point, that would be easy. 

I didn't bother to wait for her to recover before I sent my attacks. One after another after another after another. She was getting pummeled. I was winning. And that felt good. She had this coming for a LONG time. 

"I GIVE UP! TAKE HIM!" said Sheila. Her armor was off and she sat in the mud in her subarmor. Blood dripped down from her lip and nose. Her right eye was black, the other purple and swollen. "He's yours. Do whatever you want with him, witch."

"That would be his choice and his choice alone," I said, lifting up the injured warrior. Since he was in just subarmor, he wasn't too heavy. "I hope you live, so you can know what happens when you treat others like personal possessions. You've treated him like a rag doll for the past seven years. You had better not EVER do something like this to anyone ever again. Or I'll be back."

With that last comment, I walked off. Cye's eyes were half open. "Thank you," he said quietly. 

"Are you going to be all right?" I asked. 

"Yes, I will, now," he said. He rested his head on my shoulder. "I'm glad to know the woman I love saved my life."


	13. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve: Coming Together

(Ryo)

I darted down the hallways with White Blaze at my heels. Every time a Tin Can came around, we kicked its butt. Simple as that. But after a while it got repetitive and boring. I slowly started to get tired. Concentration got harder. But why?

_Face it, Ryo old boy. You're getting older. You're getting past your prime. Eventually, your armor will move on to the next bearer, _I thought to myself. I was right. It was bound to happen. I couldn't keep fighting forever. Maybe that's why Talpa made the Warlords and Kayura immortal at such young ages.

Suddenly, White Blaze and I were jumped. White Blaze roared and began to tear at a Tin Can, then grabbed its spear and began to impale everything in sight. I was having difficulty with the Tin Cans.

WHACK!

"Need any help, Ryo?" 

"Rowen!" I said. The last of the Tin Cans was down. "Why am I getting so tired?"  
"The armors must react stronger to younger wearers. I'd fading, too," he said. 

"This is bad," I said. Rowen just nodded. "How did you escape?"

"Tricked the Tin Cans coming in to see us. I told Robyn to run from the cell we were being held in. She obeyed," said Rowen. "C'mon, we gotta go find the others."

"Right," I said. We started off down the hallway, the promptly crashed into someone. 

"ACK!"  
"AHHH!"

"Don't scare us like that, Anubis!" I said, finally realizing who is was. Anubis and Rowen were a tangled mess of limbs on the floor as both fought to get to their feet. I finally pulled the two apart. "C'mon, we'd better go and find Talpa."

(Sage)

Kento and I stood back to back, both of us in armor. My sword was held in front of me, Kento twirling his staff around like a maniac. We were surrounded by at least two dozen soldiers. "Any ideas?" asked Kento. 

"Working on it," I said. "But I'm coming up dry."

"SNOW STORM BLAST!"

"Kojiro!" I yelled, jumping up into the rafter. Kento followed suit. We watched as the Dynasty goons below us were encased in ice, then cracked into tiny crystal shards. Kojiro looked up at us sheepishly. 

"Uh, sorry, I didn't see you guys," he said. 

I sighed heavily as we jumped down. "See anything important, like Robyn or Rowen?"

"Nope," said Kojiro. "But I'm looking for them. You guys seem anything important yet?"

"Not a thing," said Kento. 

Kojiro closed his eyes. "Well, we should probably head off towards the Pit or something."

"I hate the Pit," I said. 

"So do I," agreed Kojiro. "But we usually have pretty good luck with finding everyone down there."

"You got captured and tortured by Kioko," said Kento.

Kojiro frowned. "Shut up, let's just get going!"

"Yeah, yeah, Kojiro," I said. Kojiro turned towards me, frowned, and we went on our way.

(Robyn)

I held Cye. Slowly, he was loosing consciousness, but he was going to be all right. I couldn't believe what he said. _"I'm glad to know the woman I love saved my life." _Did he really mean that? Or was it just ramblings from being hit on the head a little too hard?

I stopped by a small stream and knelt down, placing my staff beside me. I looked at his peacefully sleeping face. He looked so serene, so calm. It appeared as if he felt, something he probably hadn't felt for many, many years. He was still so young, yet he'd experienced so much pain and suffering. He'd been a Ronin Warrior at fifteen years old. According to Ryo, he'd once been captured along with Kento and Sage, then tortured. And everything about Sheila and the rapes. Not to mention I could only imagine what he and Kojiro went through while trying to raise little Ariel on two paychecks from waiting tables at a restaurant. I smiled to see him look so happy. 

I grabbed my staff, stuck it into my back through the belt, and started to walk again. Slowly, he started to stir. Once he was starting to wake up again, I helped him to his feet. He looked at me. "Thank you for saving me," he said. 

"Anytime," I said. "You needed a break. Look, we'd better go and find your friends, then get rid of Talpa once and for all."

"I'll go with that!" said Cye. He closed his eyes. "That way."

"How do you know?"  
"We can sense each other. The armors are all connected. Even the Warlords and the Magical Armors," said Cye. "Weird, isn't it?"  
"Maybe," I said. We started off at a slow jog. "Hey, Cye?"

"Mmm?"

"What you said earlier, after I saved you from Sheila, was that, true?" I asked. 

Cye stopped short and gave me a curious look. "Huh?"  
"You know, about being saved by the woman you loved?" I asked. "Is, is that true?"

Cye blinked. "Did I say that?" he said. I secretly felt my heart sink. "Well, I, I don't know. I'm not really sure how I feel about you, but I know you're not just a friend to me. Maybe I was so groggy I jumped to conclusions or something, because I can't really say yes or no right now."

"Oh," I said. "That makes sense."

Cye laughed. "I'm sure I'll let you know." He grinned slyly. "Eventually."

"Oh you!" I said. Cye laughed as we took off again. "So, uh, what do I expect?"

"Well, Ryo has a big White Armor- the Inferno, but you already know about that, right?"  
"A little. That's the one that uses four other armor powers?" I asked. 

"Right," said Cye. "Last time Ryo took powers from Kento, Rowen, Sage, and Kojiro. I expected my armor to be taken, but it wasn't. Instead I awakened to some huge power I'm not sure even my father understands."

"Maybe we'll figure it out today," I said. "Do you think Yuli will fight?"  
"I don't think so," said Cye. "Anubis doesn't have Ariel and Mia to worry about, plus, there's six Ronins and you. He's probably in the Chronos cheering us on though. Sad to say he has to sit on the bench most of the time. He did come to us earlier to tell us about you and Rowen, though."

I smiled. I liked Yuli. Sad to know he was on such a severe punishment.

BANG!  
"The battle! It's begun!" said Cye.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen: The Battle Begins

(Cye)

Robyn and I started to run at full force towards the sound of the bang. In the middle of a huge clearing stood Talpa, the Warlords standing around him. The others were on the outskirts of the battle arena, my father once again in the strange green armor. Suddenly, Sheila, Dais, Cale, and Osiris began to glow. The glows were sent to Talpa, and they disappeared. My eyes widened. "He's going to try and reclaim his armor!"

"What!?" asked Robyn. "He can do that?"  
"That's what he did the first time around," said Cye. "ARMOR OF THE TORRENT, DAO-"  
"STOP!" yelled Robyn, grabbing my hands. "If you do that, then he can take your powers!"

"He can do it anyways," I said. "It's the only way we'll have a fighting chance. Besides, he can't reclaim Kojiro or you or even my father."

Robyn sighed heavily. "Fine, but I'll figure out a way to bust you guys out if he does."

"Usually Ryo takes care of that. But stay up here unless it looks like we really need it," I said. "ARMOR OF THE TORRENT, DAO SHIN!" I felt the familiar sensation of my armor up until I was back in armor. I jumped down to where Ryo and the others stood waiting for the battle to begin. 

"Glad you could join us, Cye," said Ryo. I smiled as I took a fighting stance. 

"Guys, I'll do what I can to keep you from getting absorbed, too," said Kojiro.

Rowen nodded. "Good, because we'll need that help," said Rowen. "HERE IT COMES!" We all darted in several directions as Talpa's first attack headed our way. It struck Sage. I watched in horror as he turned into a green energy and was absorbed by Talpa. He started to laugh as he got bigger. 

"This is bad," I said. He sent an attack my way. I artfully dodged it. Kojiro got ready to swing his battle ax. 

"SNOW STORM BLAST!!!"

A sudden, strong gust of snow bombarded Talpa. He screamed as he tried to avoid the attack. While he was still busy, I released my own sure kill. "SUPAH WAVE SMASHA!"  
"SNOW STORM BLAST!!!" Kojiro let loose his sure kill again when Talpa was his wettest. He'd be even worse off. He crystallized into a solid white structure. We all stood, watching the evil Dynasty emperor. The ice shattered, and he was MAD. He sent an energy attack at Kojiro, knocking him down and out and of the battle. 

"Kojiro!" I cried. I just barely saw an attack coming before I felt someone leap up and grab me, taking me out of the line of fire. I looked up to see Dad. "Thank you."

"Pay attention, he'll be fine," he said. He took the sword he carried, held it up high, and charged Talpa. He got a good slice on his helmet, shattering it. I could see the rotting corpse part of him once again.

"Oh sick," said Kento, looking a little green. Talpa took this opportunity to take Kento. That left myself, my father, Ryo, Rowen, and Robyn as back-up, possibly Yuli if it got bad enough. And if Kojiro got up, we'd have him back as well.

I'd forgotten about Kioko. She laughed evilly as she let loose her attack, entangling Rowen and White Blaze in her vines. Ryo cut them loose, then prepared his sure kill. "FLARE UP NOW!!!!!!"

Kioko was no longer a problem as her blackened form ran away screaming. Talpa growled, and began to roar, letting out more attacks. One hit White Blaze and sent the great tiger off to the side. He was okay, but too hurt to fight. I jumped down and whacked Talpa with my yari. He screamed and tried to grab me. I kept eluding him. 

"DIE!!! ALL OF YOU!!!!" he screamed. More and more attacks were let loose. We all kept eluding them, until an attack reached Rowen, absorbing him. Ryo and I let our sure-kills loose at once. 

"FLARE UP NOW!!!!!!!!"

"SUPAH WAVE SMASHA!"

I watched as the water and fire worked together to attack Talpa. But he still came out. A little more bruised, but able to fight. Ryo collapsed. 

"Ryo!" I cried and Talpa took him, too. Robyn decided to join the fight and took a shot at Talpa. Dad let loose another attack with his sword. But it wouldn't be enough.

I leapt down and ran to Kojiro's side. Slowly, he was coming to. I panicked and showered him with water. His eyes opened and he looked at me in confusion. "We need you, badly!" I said. 

"Right, dude- where did everyone- oh now, he got the others?"  
"Yes, now go!" I said. Kojiro stood up. "You up to it?"  
"Course I am!" said Kojiro. "I could drag a trained Ronin kicking and screaming to a shrinks office, I can take this."

I frowned at the memory. Dr. Mujara had been nice, but I was not happy as Kojiro had me over his shoulder. I used some words I didn't think I'd ever use. Certainly not in public. I still owed him for that one. "Just get up and fight."

"Right," said Kojiro. "Let me freeze him, then you wet him, and we'll make the ice really thick."

"Good idea," I said. 

"Then we can bury him in dead hamsters. No, I'm just kidding," said Kojiro with a laugh. "SNOW STORM BLAST!"  
"SUPAH WAVE SMASHA!"

"SNOW STORM BLAST!"

We alternated the attacks until Talpa looked something like an evil snowman. The ice then cracked. Talpa's armor was almost gone, and eight shivering armored figures lay in the crystal shards. 

"Uh oh," said Kojiro. "The guys! They're popsicles!"

"We have to keep fighting- Robyn!" I said. Robyn stood over the ice and let out a warm red ray. The ice completely melted, and the guys (and the Warlords) were slowly coming around. My father surrounded the Ronins in golden orbes, then sent them off to the sidelines. He stepped infront of Talpa. Robyn, Kojiro, and I joined him. 

"You don't stand a chance!" I said. Talpa roared, his head suddenly catching fire. "The heck?!"

"He's at his most powerful stage," said my father, suddenly in fear. Kojiro and I exchanged looked. Robyn stared him down. Then, she brought her staff before her, and closed her eyes. What was she doing?

That was when the crystal began to glow. The ball on top turned into a clear crystal that began to reflect the colors of the rainbow. It began to glow in a brilliant light. Robyn opened her eyes.

"I CALL APON THE POWER OF THE CRYSTAL STAFF! DESTROY THIS DEMON OF THE EVIL DYNASTY! AGHHHHHH!!!"

"AHHHHHH!" screamed Talpa as his form began to disintegrate. He screamed in agony as his corpse, armor, and weapons became the pile of ash that marked his grave. I watched as his head slowly crumbled into a hideous black ash, as his eyes began an oozing white goo. His armor seemed to burn in an unseen inferno as it joined the dust. Once he was just dust, the dust blew away.

Talpa was dead.

I stared at where he had been, then smiled. "He, he's gone!" I said. "We beat him!"

"But you haven't beaten us yet, Ronin rodents." I looked up to see Osiris, Dais, Cale, Sheila, Kioko (now, oddly enough, back to her old self), and Kayura standing before us. Osiris was the one who had spoken. "We will return with Talpa's son, Omega. Be weary in the coming years, Ronins." With that, they disappeared.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen: It's Over

(Ariel)

Starr, Skye, and I waited patiently by the window with Mia, waiting for my father, grandfather, and their friends. I was nervous. Were they okay?

"Look!" said Skye. We looked up and saw the Ronins coming back. I squealed and immediately rushed outside to meet my father. "Ariel!"

"Daddy!" I cried, running into my father's waiting arms. My father smiled and picked me up. He was just in subarmor, so there wasn't any bulky armor making my hug difficult. He smiled back at me and kissed my forehead. 

"Hello, there, little one," he said. 

"You're all okay! You're all safe!" I said. 

Mia and my friends joined them. "What happened?" asked Mia.

Kojiro sighed heavily. "Well, it looks like Talpa is very, very dead, and Robyn was the one that got rid of him."

I looked over at Robyn. She looked tired, but happy. "You did it!"

"Tell me about it," said Robyn. 

"What happened?" asked Mia. "You've got to tell us EVERYTHING."

I listed as they all started to talk at once, except for Pops. He just shook his head and rolled his eyes. He hit Dad on the head with the Staff to get his attention. My father blushed sheepishly and I laughed. The others stopped talking and started to take turns telling us what happened. Basically they rescued Robyn and Rowen, then went to fight Talpa, who was killed by Robyn using a very powerful attack.

"Cool," said Starr. "But what about my mom and dad?"

"What about my parents, too?" asked Skye.

Pops sighed heavily. "I looked for captured civilians, but there were none. The attack was very small on the entire population. I'm afraid if they were taken, they might not come back."

Starr and Skye looked ready to cry. Mia knelt down and hugged them both. The Ronins, Robyn, and Pops bowed their heads in silent respect. I just helped Mia hug my mourning friends. "It's okay to cry," I said. "It's all right to cry."

(Cye)

Later that evening, Starr and Skye were in Ariel's room, consoling each other and getting away from everyone. I was in the living room, curled up in a ball on a big, comfy chair. I could feel the mental block beginning to weaken. Now that Talpa was destroyed, it was all right for my bottled emotions to come out. 

I felt someone sit next to me. I looked up to see Robyn smiling down at me. The young red head had changed back into a pink T-shirt and tight jeans. She looked very pretty. She slowly ran her finger through my hair. "Suddenly you're emotions are coming back, aren't they?"

"A little," I said. "It's weird. One minute I'm rejoicing that Talpa's gone, and now I'm all of a sudden remembering the details from a horrible experience."

"It's all right. She won't be bothering you for a long time. At least not while I'm around," said Robyn. She joined me on my perch. I sat up and brought my legs up o my chest, resting my chin on my knees and looking at Robyn. She smiled sweetly. "I won't let her harm you again."

"I know," I said. 

"How do you know?" asked Robyn. 

I smiled. "I'm not sure, I just, know, that's all."

"Well, how much time do you think you'll need to heal?" asked Robyn.

"Probably a few days. The first time was harder because I didn't mention it to a soul and it was a shock. This time, I feel safer to be open about it, and since it's already happened, it doesn't feel as hard. It's still unsettling, but not as earth-shattering as it was all those years ago," I said. 

Robyn sighed heavily and readjusted her position. "Well, how was she in comparison to any other girlfriends you had?"

"I never had a girlfriend before her. I had a first kiss, but not a girlfriend. Shelia was my first date, my first relationship, and sadly, my first time in bed, even if it was against my will," I said.

The Maiden of Crystal cocked an eyebrow. "Who was your first kiss? How'd that happen?"

I smiled. "Her name was Megan. I was eleven years old and we were in school together. She had pretty blonde hair and big, green eyes. Once, a bunch of boys dared me to go to the playground late at night and wait until mid-night. Megan was there, on escape from her father. We talked for a while, then she thanked me for letting her spill her guts and kissed me right then and there. A week later the authorities arrested her father and she was sent to live with relatives in Australia. I never saw her again."

"That's sweet," said Robyn. "For a guy whose destiny is as a warrior, you really are a sweet guy. It's really a shame your destiny likes to throw so much crap at you."

I blushed. "Really?"

"Really," said Robyn. "I'm glad it's over. For now."

"But, when are they going to come back? Osiris certainly wasn't joking around. They will come back with that Omega character," I said.

Robyn closed her eyes. "There's no telling when that'll happen. All we can do is wait. Who knows? Maybe it'll be past your time."

"Huh?" I asked. "What, you mean after I've passed on?"

"No, you can't have that armor when you're a little old man. You're getting past your prime. Ryo and Rowen were talking about that earlier. They're getting tired out easily and are having a harder time fighting Dynasty soldiers. Your armors are probably all starting to get ready for their next bearers," said Robyn. 

I blinked. "That'll be weird. I've felt so connected to the darn thing for so long, how am I going to take something like that?" I asked. 

"I'm sure you can handle it. By then your emotions will have healed completely. Don't get mad at me for this, but I have a feeling I know who's next in line for the Armor of the Torrent." Robyn looked up and stared across the room. Ariel was coming out from the den and heading towards the kitchen. 

"Ariel?" I asked. 

Robyn nodded. "She's a direct descendant of three armor bearers, you, Sheila, and Anubis. Torrent, Autumn, and Spring. She's seen the Dynasty's handy work for herself. She'd know what to expect from a battle. Yes, that little girl might be following in her father's footsteps one day." 

I gulped. "I don't like that idea. Some of the stuff I've battled is just. . . awful. When I first got her, I was perhaps a little frightened that the Dynasty would come after her because of me. They did, too. Sehkment kidnapped her in the middle of the night. It was awful. That was the night Kojiro first got his armor."

"Sehkment, the Dark Warlord of Venom. He's dead, right?"

"White Blaze ended his life. He had some sick plans for her. I don't even want to know what he said to her, but whatever it was, Lord knows a four year old shouldn't have heard any of it. That was two years ago. She seems to be fine, but. . ."

"The memories live on," said Robyn. "Well, I would go back to my apartment, but it kinda got incinerated. Looks like I'll be crashing here for a while."

"And you know you're welcome to stay," I said. Robyn was about to stand up and leave, but I got to my feet quicker. "Robyn?"

"Mmm?"

I nervously shifted. "Would you like to go and see a movie sometime?"

"Alone? Just the two of us?" asked Robyn with a sly grin.

I nodded, smiling myself. "Maybe get a bite to eat afterwards?"  
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Robyn. "How's Friday night sound?"  
I nodded. "Friday night it is."


	16. Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen: A New Beginning

(Robyn)

The week rolled past wonderfully. Starr and Skye were on their way to being adopted by Mia, something she'd longed to do with Yuli but never had gotten the chance to do. Graduation came and went. Cye announced he was going to go for a doctorate after he got settled in at a job. Kento started to make plans to move out. His parents were going to be retiring soon and he needed to take over the family business. Sage was getting ready to leave, too. His grandfather was getting too old to run his family's dojo, so it was Sage's turn to carry the torch. Rowen was accepted to a fancy graduate school to get his masters degree in astronomy. Ryo, Kojiro, Cye, Anubis, and I were the only ones who weren't leaving. Well, Ariel and the kids were staying, White Blaze too, but I was more referring to those who are legally independent. 

So things got a little spread out. Everyone now had their own room, except for Starr and Skye, who shared a room. No more bunking up tightly like we had to. We did all that on Thursday, soon after Sage left for the dojo. He, Kento, and Rowen all promised to write and call. Kento invited us down to the restaurant anytime. 

Friday night soon fell apon us. Kojiro and Ryo had gotten tickets to a baseball game, and Mia was going to a ballet with a few of her friends. Anubis said he'd baby-sit Ariel, Starr, and Skye so Cye and I could go out on our date. 

I spent close to an hour in my room, looking through dresses and cosmetics until I finally decided on a simple black skirt, a green blouse, and dark green tights. I threw on some lipstick, eye shadow, and a little blush, then grabbed my purse, slipped into a pair of heels, and went downstairs to meet Cye. Anubis seemed to be lecturing his son about being polite and treating me like a queen. Cye just nodded his head each time, probably not paying attention. He was wearing a pale blue dress shirt, blue slacks, and casual looking black dress shoes.

"Hi, Cye," I said, stepping down the stairs. Cye looked up at me and gasped. 

"You look beautiful," he said. 

"You look pretty handsome yourself," I said. I held my arm out for him hook his arm through. Ariel and her friends looked up. 

"Daddy's going on a DATE," teased Ariel. 

Cye laughed. "See you later, sweetie."

"Bye, bye, Daddy! Have fun!" said Ariel. "Starr, Skye and I are gonna have lots of fun with Pops!"

"Don't tie him up like the last time he baby-sat you," he warned. 

"We won't," they said in unison, all with one hand behind their backs. I rolled my eyes. They surely had their fingers crossed. I looked at my date. 

"He'll be all right. He knows just how to bribe them. If not, we'll call after the movie and make sure they didn't do anything to him," said Cye. 

I laughed. "They're just kids, let them have their fun."

"I guess you're right. Come on, we don't want to be late," I said.

The movie was, well, a sappy romance. Dinner was good. Cye was handsome. The bills weren't horrendous. We had a great time.

After all that, Cye took me out for a walk along the beach. "What's out here?" I asked. 

"A friend of mine," he said. Cye went right over to the docks and knelt down, putting his hand in the water. I slowly went over to where he was. Suddenly, something came out of the water. 

"GAGHHHH!" I screamed, stumbling backwards. 

Cye laughed. "Robyn, meet Jawbreaker."

I looked over at the form. An orca. I slowly went up to him and gently rubbed the rubbery nose. "He's beautiful," I said. 

"He and I are old friends. He protected me when we were scattered all over Japan," said Cye. "Then he tried to save me from my Evil Twin."

"Wow," I said. Jawbreaker opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out. Cye reached in and gently scratched his tongue. "Huh?"

"Whales like this," said Cye. "At least this one does."

Jawbreaker happily clicked and once Cye removed his hand, looked at me. "That's Robyn, my date." Jawbreaker seemed to approve me and nodded his head. I laughed. 

"Come one, we'd better get home and check on your old man," I said. 

"Oh dear, that probably is a good idea," said Cye. 

(Cye)

When we got home, we found a very comical sight. Dad, Ariel, Starr, and Skye were all sprawled out on the couch in a big, sleeping heap. I laughed. "Well, they stayed out of trouble," said Robyn.

"Yeah," I said. "Coffee?"

"Sounds good," said Robyn. 

We headed into the kitchen. I started to look for the coffee, but found the can to be empty. "Oh, tomorrow morning will not be a pretty sight. Kojiro practically lives on the stuff."

"Oh no," said Robyn with a laugh. "I'll head out and get some, okay?"

"No, we've spent the entire evening out," I said. "Just sit back and relax. I'm sure Mia or one of the guys is aware of this."

"Probably. Kojiro will go to the store in his pajamas to get coffee if he wants it bad enough," said Robyn. 

"Yeah!" I said. We started to laugh, then looked at each other. Her eyes met mine. So young, so beautiful. Sweet, kind, caring. I slowly walked over to her. She stood on her toes and we gently, kindly kissed. Her lips felt so soft and tender, the tip of her nose brushing up against mine. Robyn slowly wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Kissy, kissy!" 

The two of us looked over to see the girls and my father looking at us.

"Hey!" said Robyn. "If you want to watch we're gonna have to charge you admission!"

"Hey!" said Starr. "We don't have any money!"

"Well then I guess we'll just have to feed you to the tiger," said Robyn. "Right, Cye?"

"I don't know, Robyn, are you sure that's a good idea? Maybe we should just make them wash the car?"  
"Or better yet, clean out the garage!"

"How's about if we just let them off the hook this one time?" I finally said. 

"Aw, such a let down," said Robyn. "But I'm in a good mood. Let's let them off the hook. But next time, twenty bucks. Each."

The girls giggled and Dad rolled his eyes. I just smiled.


	17. Epilogue

Epilogue

__

One year later. . .

(Robyn)

I sighed heavily. Life was good. Life was very, very good. I looked over to my right and saw Cye's nearly asleep form laying beside me. His bare chest was slowly rising and falling with each breath he took, his hair a worse mess than usual. For someone who had only experienced rape, he wasn't half-bad.

It was our one year anniversary since we'd started dating. The girls had gone on a Girl Scout over-night field trip, Ryo and Kojiro both on business trip, Anubis in Florida, and Mia visiting relatives. So it was just me and Cye. We'd gone out on a very romantic date, consisting of a movie, dinner, and a dance. Then we'd gotten home and just knowing the mood was right, made love. It was a wonderful, passionate experience I'd never felt before. The way his eyes lit up, I just knew he hadn't ever felt anything like it before, either. 

It was my first time ever, his first time on his own will. I didn't care that he might be considered Sheila's "sloppy seconds". I loved him dearly. I rested my head on his chest and sighed heavily. What a night. Never before had I felt so in love with him, never before. I just knew then and there we were meant to be together.

I felt Cye beginning to stir. "Hmm?" I asked. 

Cye opened his eyes and sat up. "What time is it?" he asked, almost groggily.

"Eleven thirty," I said. He blinked, yawned, and got up. "Cye? What are you doing?"

"Looking for my pants. Where did I toss them?" he said. 

"Uh, I think it was over by the lamp," I said, pulling the covers around me. Cye grabbed a towel, wrapped it around his waist, and went to retrieve his pants. He then started digging around them. "What are you doing?"  
"Something you're going to hate me for, then love me for," he said. He stood up, hiding something behind his back. He went back over to the bed and kissed my forehead. 

"Well?" I asked. 

"I have come to a decision."

"What's that?" I asked, running my fingers up and down his bare chest. 

"I've decided I no longer want you to be my girlfriend."

My heart suddenly shattered. That cheap, low-down dirty scoundrel! "But, But we just made love! How can you say that!? You jerk!"

"That's not what I meant!" said Cye, holding up his hands defensively. A mischievous grin crossed his face. What was he up to? "I don't want to break up with you. I love you more than words can say."

"So they why don't you want me to be your girlfriend anymore?!" I demanded. 

Cye smiled and pulled out the thing his was hiding. A small, blue velvet box. He opened it and I gasped. Inside was a beautifully crafted diamond ring. "You're the love of my life, and I don't know how I could be with anyone else but you. Every day I wake up and feel blessed to be yours. I feel like the sun shines down on just me every time we kiss. I feel thousands of emotions at once whenever we're together. I don't want you to be my girlfriend because there's something else I want you to be."

"What?" I asked, slightly dumbfounded. 

"My wife. Robyn, will you marry me?"  
I gasped. "Oh yes!" I said, kissing him and nearly knocking him down in the process. Cye laughed as he returned the kiss, but he brought up back up to slide the ring on my finger. 

"I knew it was the perfect one," he said. 

"It is," I said, admiring it. "I love you."

"I love you, too, Robyn."


End file.
